This invention relates to a line-of-sight input device, a method of a line-of-sight input, and a line-of-sight input program.
Conventionally, methods of a line-of-sight input for inputting by using a line-of-sight have been developed for people who cannot operate a keyboard, a mouse, or a touch panel due to physical disabilities.
For example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 5077879 (hereinafter Patent Document 1) discloses a method for determining an input element at a position of a cursor with a trigger of detecting a blink of an input operator after acquiring an image around an eyeball of the input operator, detecting a direction of line-of-sight of the input operator, and moving a cursor index between a plurality of input elements according to the direction of line-of-sight.
Further, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2005-100366 (hereinafter Patent Document 2) discloses, as a method of scrolling a screen, a method of starting an application, with a trigger of detecting an intentional blink for more than or equal to three seconds, when an icon or the like reaches a selected region near a center of a screen by moving the whole screen toward the center of the screen according to a direction of line-of-sight.
There was a problem, however, that it was difficult for the conventional methods of line-of-sight input to determine a position quickly and precisely according to an intention of a user.
For example, the method of line-of-sight input of Patent Document 1 reads whether the direction of line-of-sight is right or left and sequentially moves a cursor one by one through input elements aligned on a screen, and so it takes time in proportion to the number of input elements through which the cursor must be moved. Although Patent Document 1 also discloses a method for accelerating movement speed of the cursor in accordance with the number of blinks or as a result of the user's line-of-sight being turned in the same direction, there was a problem that an operation error tends to take place if a user tries to place an accelerated cursor on a targeted input element.
Similarly, although the method of line-of-sight input of Patent Document 2 mentions a method for accelerating screen scroll speed when a user turns their line-of-sight in the same direction for more than or equal to three seconds, there was a problem that the user must maintain this line-of-sight even during a scroll at a relatively lower speed for a certain period of time, and an operation error tends to take place if the user tries to place a once-accelerated cursor on a targeted input element.
The present invention focuses on these points and provides a line-of-sight input device, a method of a line-of-sight input, and a line-of-sight input program that are capable of determining a position quickly and precisely according to an intention of a user.